The appellant, Tommy Bell, appeals from his conviction of various crimes, including murder, stemming from the death of his estranged wife, Vivian Bell.1 On appeal, Mr. Bell raises numerous issues. In this regard, we agree with Mr. Bell’s contention that the trial court erred in admitting out-of-court statements that the victim made to police officers, but we conclude that the error was harmless. We also agree with Mr. Bell’s contention that the trial court erred in sentencing him both for the possession of a knife during the commission of the offense of murder and for the possession of a knife during the commission of the offense of kidnapping with bodily injury. Finding no merit to Bell’s other contentions, we affirm in part and reverse in part. 1. Mr. Bell and Ms. Bell were legally married at the time of Ms. Bell’s death, but had lived apart for some time. The State presented evidence that on July 16, 1998, Ms. Bell disappeared. That evening, she was planning to celebrate her birthday with some friends, including her new boyfriend and another friend, Chiquita Ivory. Ms. Ivory testified that she and Ms. Bell left the hairdresser about 5:00 p.m. on the afternoon of July 16, and then went to Ms. Bell’s apartment. Ms. Ivory added that Mr. Bell was at the apartment when they arrived; that she Ms. Ivory left Ms. Bell’s apartment about 6:00 p.m.; that she talked to Ms. Bell about 7:00 p.m.; and that Ms. Bell told her that she was going to get something for her son to eat, and then come pick up Ms. Ivory to go out to celebrate Ms. Bell’s birthday. Ms. Ivory testified that she never spoke with Ms. Bell again, and that she Ms. Ivory called Ms. Bell’s apartment several times that evening, but was unable to contact her. Ms. Bell’s son testified that he lived with his mother; that on the afternoon of July 16, he knew his mother was going out for the evening; that his father was at Ms. Bell’s apartment; that his mother told him she would buy him some food and leave it at the apartment; that he Ms. Bell’s son left the apartment late in the afternoon and did not return home until about 2:00 a.m.; and that when he returned home, his mother was not at the apartment but his father was.
About 2:30 p.m. on July 18, Ms. Bell’s body was found in a field in an isolated area in Houston County, and her car was found nearby. Ms. Bell had bled to death from knife wounds to her neck. A police officer testified that one of Ms. Bell’s shoes was located near the car and that her other shoe was 35 feet down a dirt road. The officer added that near the latter shoe, the vegetation on the ground was “torn up,” and that there was blood spatter all around the area. There were also footprints going to a nearby pond.
