Popular Selma police Sgt. honored, next chapter to focus on ministry, photography businesses

Newly retired Sgt. Lance Pearce was feted at the June 2, 2026, meeting of the Selma City Council with an award recognizing his 20 years of service with the police department. 

Pearce’s family, friends, and, according to Selma Mayor Scott Robertson, “about a quarter of the department,” were on hand to congratulate him. 

Now, he plans to focus his energies on his photography and ministry businesses, Portraits of Hope Ministry, he said, fulltime. Pearce has also run a successful private investigation business, Pearce Investigations, since 1999. 

Selma Police Department Chief Rudy Alcaraz presented Pearce with the service award. 

Pearce said when he started his career in Selma as an officer, he had become very jaded.

“I thought I was doing the right thing by operating under the letter of the law and basing my actions on just the facts, without being guided by my emotions,” Pearce said. “Over the years, I realized that I was wrong.” 

He said he began to patrol with “an open mind and caring heart.” 

“I discovered that respect cannot be commanded. You have to give respect in order to get respect,” Pearce said. “By putting the people first and putting myself in their situation, I began to see things in a different light.” 

Pearce, a photographer, founded Portraits of Hope Ministry in September 2015. 

As part of his outreach, he travels to the neighboring city of Fresno, searches out those experiencing homelessness, photographs them, and provides prayer.  

He gives them care packages that, according to the company website, include items like hygiene products, Bibles, Top Ramen, tooth paste and seasonal clothing items. 

The photographs, along with a bio about how each person became homeless, are featured on the Portraits of Hops social media pages and available at various art shows for sale. 

“I also began to see that the respect was going both ways,” Pearce said. 

During his 20-year tenure with the department, Pearce served as a certified Law Enforcement and School Resource Chaplain, a certified Taser Instructor, and a Field Training Officer for the department, Chief Alcaraz said. 

Pearce also has experience in Traffic Collision Investigation School, Standardized Field Sobriety Testing and Basic Police Motorcycle Training. 

He has received multiple awards, including one from the California Legislature Assembly Resolution, an AVOID DUI Award and a Life Saving Commendation, according to the staff report. 

During his acceptance speech, Pearce thanked former Selma police chief Thomas Whiteside for “giving him the chance to prove that anyone is capable of turning their lives around.”

Whiteside served as chief of Selma PD from 1987 until his retirement in 2009.