So Khatyman found himself holding a $50 summons for obstructing a seat on the subway.
The high school senior says he was about to change trains at the 36th Street Station in Brooklyn around 2 a.m. when a police officer ticketed him after seeing his feet perched on the edge of another seat on a near-empty train.
"I though the point of the NYPD was to help us and protect us, not to take our money for no reason," he said.
Harlem waiter Andres Alzamora insist his feet were simply crossed in front of him when he was ticketed for $60 at Manhattan's 96th Street station back in December.
"I was shocked, because it was my birthday," he said "Two in the morning, right after working around the diner."
While MTA rules of conduct do say riders who rest their feet on another seat may be fined from $25 to $100, many straphangers not only question the fairness of the enforcement, but also the motive behind it.
"They're just gonna do it to make more money because we have a big deficit problem," rider Rob Surgerman said.
Irvin and his mother say they plan to fight his ticket because they can't afford not to.
"I'm a single mom," Izabella Medvinsky said. "I work three jobs, and $50 is a lot of money."
