We had a guy like that here in Santa Cruz, a sidewalk performer/clown who went by the name of Mr. Twister. He'd feed expired meters for motorists who parked downtown. And yes, they did bust him for it. He got national attention, though, and there was even a "Free Mr. Twister" campaign around here. Eventually, the ordinance was repealed. (Mr. Twister himself is not my favorite person on earth, but that's beside the point.)
Here's a link to a rather funny site about the prosecution of Mr. Twister, put up by the lawyer who defended him in court.
http://www.benricelaw.com/twister/twister1.html