Right now NYC is in "revenue mode." They are doing everything they can to get revenue for the city, including writing more tickets. That is why there has been so many complaints that the NYPD (and the NYPD traffic agents) have a "gotcha" mentality, and the uproar has been so bad that City Council had to pass a law a couple months ago to mandate a 5-minute grace period before writing a parking ticket.
Just don't do anything within sight of an NYPD cop that you know will result in a "gotcha."