In NY it is a "violation" of the law for most traffic offenses. Technically you can be arrested for any traffic infraction but in practice they give you a ticket. Upon conviction you can be imprisoned for up to 15 days.
With violations the officer has 100% discretion about what to do. They can decide not to write a ticket/arrest someone for any reason. This officer was obviously a bad officer that is on a power trip but the OP has not much recourse for what was done. It is sad. I guess it could have been worse. The officer could have made up just about anything and made it worse (like saying you swung at them or threatened them)
With violations the officer has 100% discretion about what to do. They can decide not to write a ticket/arrest someone for any reason. This officer was obviously a bad officer that is on a power trip but the OP has not much recourse for what was done. It is sad. I guess it could have been worse. The officer could have made up just about anything and made it worse (like saying you swung at them or threatened them)