"consistent with death due to strangulation"
But, you're saying, NOT consistent with head trauma. It's how you are EXCLUDING that as a possibility that I'm not getting. I googled it, too, and found references to the causes of petechial hemorrhaging. I was surprised to find that it is NOT solely related to strangulation.
Also, a semantics issue. The material issue in this question of which event occured first has to do with strangulation, not asphyxiation. There can be many causes of asphyxiation and strangulation is only one of them.
Correct. From what I have been able to find, head trauma alone (without asphyxiation) would not result in the characteristic changes in the lungs and pancreas. I am aware of the difference between asphyxiation and strangulation. The former could be the result of drowning for instance, and have the aforementioned petechial hemorrhaging. Can you find a source of online autopsy reports?