INDIANAPOLIS » An attorney for former Subway pitchman Jared Fogle is asking a federal appeals court to shorten the more than 15-year prison sentence he received for possessing child pornography and paying for sex with underage girls.

The appeal filed Friday argues that the District Court judge in Indianapolis abused her authority by giving Fogle a sentence three years longer than the maximum term prosecutors agreed to pursue as part of his plea deal.

The appeal argues that the judge’s sentence is unreasonable and undermines the trust needed to negotiate plea agreements.

Fogle was sentenced in November on one count each of distributing and receiving child porn and traveling to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a child.

A spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office declined to comment on Fogle’s appeal.