Pearland appoints Derek Dunham as police chief
Derek Dunham is Pearland’s new police chief after the retirement of longtime Chief Johnny Spires, who spent 36 years with the Pearland Police Department.
The City of Pearland announced Dunham’s appointment July 6, 2026. Dunham was sworn in June 15, beginning his tenure as the department’s top leader.
The change gives Pearland a new police chief during a period of broader turnover in city leadership and continued population growth. Dunham moves into the position after serving as assistant chief of the department’s Support Bureau.
Experience inside the department
Dunham has worked for the Pearland Police Department since 2009, according to local reporting. His previous role placed him over a range of administrative and operational functions that support the department’s daily work.
Those responsibilities included budgeting, dispatch, records, school-resource officers, recruiting, training, professional standards and policy development. The work covers both the systems residents rely on when contacting police and the internal programs used to hire, train and oversee personnel.
As chief, Dunham will oversee the department’s operations, strategic planning, community engagement and public-safety programs. His responsibilities therefore expand from managing the Support Bureau to directing the department as a whole.
The city identifies Dunham as holding a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and a master’s degree in public administration. His education and previous assignments provide a background in both police operations and public administration.
Transition after Spires’ retirement
Spires’ retirement ends a 36-year career with the Pearland Police Department. The leadership change is not a temporary assignment or an interim announcement: Dunham was sworn in June 15 and has assumed the chief’s role.
The transition also comes alongside other recent changes in Pearland city leadership. Community Impact described the police-chief appointment as part of wider mayoral and administrative turnover in the city.
For residents, the practical effect is a change in who sets the police department’s overall direction. The chief’s responsibilities include decisions and oversight involving department operations, recruitment and training, dispatch and records, professional standards, school-resource officers, community engagement and public-safety planning.
Dunham’s previous work touched each of those areas, but his new position carries department-wide responsibility. That includes setting strategic priorities and maintaining the public-facing programs that connect the police department with the community.
What the appointment means next
The immediate development is the formal change at the top of the department: Spires has retired, and Dunham has moved from assistant chief to police chief.
The appointment gives Pearland a department leader with long experience inside the agency at a time when the city is also experiencing broader leadership changes. His background in budgeting, policy development, staffing, training and support operations will now be part of the department’s overall leadership.
Dunham’s tenure will include responsibility for the department’s existing operations and public-safety programs, as well as its strategic planning and community engagement. The city’s announcement establishes those responsibilities but does not set out a detailed first-year agenda or performance timetable.
Sources
- City of Pearland Appoints Derek Dunham as Chief of Police, City of Pearland
- Pearland shifts with new mayor and city leadership changes, Community Impact
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